Jews have always been called the "chosen people," because that's how we are described in the Bible. But what does it mean to be "chosen"? Chosen for what? How did we get to be chosen? Why did G-d have to choose a people?
82 Comments Posted
I have been studying Torah and attending synagogue services for some time now, keeping the Noachide laws and considering conversion to Judaism. This is one of the most interesting writings on the "chosen people" I have ever read. Shalom
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Okay, here is my question. What was the nature of expectation Abraham made to the G-d such that G-d responded to Abraham with His own expectation. In another word, the covenant of the blessing of Abraham. You see, I've been relating to G-d as a person all my life, and I can't even come close to guessing what it meas not just for me but for my offspring (if I ever have one) to relate to G-d. Of course, both Issac and Jacob made their own contribution to what was started by Abraham, and later Moses did a big thing himself. But to think of who the Jews are, the best place to start is Abraham and the first question is, what did Abraham expect on G-d?
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If the Jews are a "heavenly people" who were divinely created and have souls derived from the thoughts of G-d, then why were non-Jews created?
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Wow, Rav Freidman, you are quite the holy man. I could only imagine what sort of spiratual hights you reached to get you to these conclusions. This essay truly unburdened me from having to give an empty answer to when poeple ask ME questions.
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The weakness of Rabbi Friedman's article is that it demonstrates the Jews are people just like any other people. This obviously conflicts with the author's supposed focal of the argument. What was said by Rabbi Friedman could have said by any number of people throughout the ages and in differing places. What is common to all people are the flimsiness of the ego and the reliance upon the knowledge to overcome this weakness. (So much that people start building up the knowledge unto themselves and that knowledge becomes their purpose to be.) In another word, people are proud (desire to be in the body) without having a pride (having a certainty of the being)....
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G-d bless you now and forever.
I urge you to re-think your position that "everyone" hates the Jews. I am part of "everyone" and I love the Jews. Most of my christian friends love Jews and pray for Israel on a regular basis. In fact, I have rarely in my life encountered anyone who spoke negatively about the Jewish race, nation or religion.
Also, to give another, more practical, perspective on why the Jews are G-d's "chosen" people... Amid all of the worship of false gods, how would any one in G-d's creation know that He was different than any other (false) god? Only by "choosing" a particular nation could the Creator say, "Wait a minute. I AM the One and only true G-d. I am the Creator, the living G-d. There is and can be no other. Look at my chosen people so that you will see that their G-d is real and so that you will come back to Me, the One Who created you."
For your consideration,
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Very thoughtful article by Rabbi Friedman. Thank you. All souls are G-dly, but I think it is the "hierarchy" that is evident in the argument that angers non-Jews and Jews who don't want to be different. By making the distinction, saying Jews are a part of G-d's thought, and not His speech, that implies higher, or better. Doesn't everyone aspire to that?
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First, I'm a non-Jew, non-Christian (though raised in the Christian world), non-Hindu (etc), and I would like to share some of my thoughts.
Everything that comes from G-d is first rate. How can it be any other way? A stone is just as first rate as an animal or a human or - if the Jewish belief system is the right one - the Jewish soul, which would then be different from mine. If I should have problems, let's say, with the thought that you are a child of G-d and I am not, then I should take my problems to G-d instead of to you. After all, none of you asked to be Jews anymore than I asked to be what I am.
As for anti-Semitism: yes, it's very much alive. But that's not the same thing as saying that ALL Jews are hated by ALL non-Jews. I believe that words such as (examples) 'all, never, always' should be used with caution.
PS's. Nothing is external of G-d -was a convert created by speech? - last, I found your tone condescending, no 2 ways about that. TONE, not message.
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This is an excellent article. Very well done, very well written, some excellent points are made. However, I don't beleive that the article is properly named, only becuase it doesnt' really answer who is a jew.
We clearly define, from the article, that Jews are supposed to conduct themselves in a certain way, and be that "light" unto the nations. However, what are we supposed to call the "rabbi" in the shul who said he doesnt' believe we are choosen. And who basiclly continues to say he doesn't beleive in g-d and that if you want to be apart of our synogogue and our "jewish" you dont' have to beleive in g-d or even beleive that g-d gave the torah. Are these still jews? The problem here is that anyone can call themselves a doctor, or a lawyer. But if you never studied medecine or law, your not really a doctor. Anyone can all themselves a Jew, but if you never really studied Judism is it fair to call yourself a jew? Becuase the article talks about being able to answer those questions....
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Finally, finally someone has explained it. This article made a deep impact. It gave me the understanding for which I've been searching 46 years, explained why I never felt like I belonged as part of the nations no matter where I went to live, why I never felt like I was actually doing what I came here to do because I didn't know what it was, or why!
This article is exactly what was needed for my mind, heart and soul to align together in knowledge, understanding and peace.
Now every Jew who reads this should know and understand where we came from, why we are here, and where we are going. I actually had to stop at several points in this article, the impact was so profound. It was moment after moment of "Eureka! I've found it! Finally!"
All I can say is Baruch HaShem. Thank you Rabbi Friedman! Why isn't anyone teaching this out here in shul? Stand up! Stop being afraid! We need our leaders to teach this to us!
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As an American this seems to me unscientific and racist. If Jews aren't a seperate race, maybe not racist but supremicist. It seems if Jews wrote the Declaration of Independence they would have wrote all men are NOT created equal...
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I'm sorry, Mr. Friedman; but Jews, for the most part, are not any more special then anyone else. You are no more divine then anyone else, and you must not consider yourself that way.
The Jewish people are from 'G-d's thought', and your mission is indeed divine (as is the Torah with which you were entrusted), but you yourself are not divine. G-d created the Jewish people because He saw the need of a covenant that is not, like every other covenant, based specifically on a profession of belief. Most covenants have adherents who profess a belief in G-d (and for the most part sincerely), but act in such a way as to do disrepair to the world. In fact, it is the very belief, albeit often sincere, that often encourages this disrepair (Muslim extremism being a prime example of it presently). G-d saw the need for a covenant that differs from all of that, and is thus separated, mostly by birthright and mitzvahs, rather then just mere belief: The Jews. But only G-d is divine.
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To Bill:
Do you think logically that their is no differences between peoples? Or you just don't LIKE the idea. If the fact is that Jews are different (which can be proven historically--the giving the torah by Mt. Sinai, etc.), why does that disturb you? If your manager gave you a special mission which is dear to him, do you think the other workers should feel upset at you or him, or feel threatend by you? The foolish ones will, but who cares about the fools, just get on with the special job and with great rejoicing...
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[Quote:] ...but the Jew is truly bothered by it, bothered in his gut. What is this all about? Not, "How do I make the most of this life?" Not, "What am I supposed to do?" But, "Why life? Why existence at all?"
I'm surprised anyone really believes only Jews struggle with - and are truly bothered by- these questions. While Jews are a unique people set apart, the above quote exposes the problem with a person trying to comment on a problem he doesn't have the tools to understand. Why anti-semitism? To the reasons Rabbie Friedman lists, I would add that anti-semites exists for much the same reason one would make the above quoted statement: lack of comprehensive education, inadequate exposure to people outside one's group, poor understanding of one's fellow man. True wisdom includes an understanding of what binds us all as human beings in addition to what separates us. Without this wisdom, it's difficult for one to distinguish real Jewish uniqueness from plain old chauvinism.
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A tramendous article; I'm Jewish by birth, and don't believe in the divinity of holy books in general. However this article rings of truth... he's right, we have no land per se because we're seemingly not of this world. Most Jews I know just see things from a totally different perspective than everyone else. Everyone sees Blue, the Jew sees Green. We're just a slightly different than everyone else... it is what it is, even if we don't like it.
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[you write:] "A non-Jew once heard this and he told me, "That explains something. I always wondered why Christianity is so unforgiving, so condemning. Whereas in Judaism, if you fail, so you'll do better next time, you'll try again.For the non-Jew who makes it his goal to become Divine, well, if you didn't do it, you're not Divine. If you didn't arrive at some Divine condition, then you're nowhere, you're where you were before, nothing's been accomplished. And that's why no matter how much good you've done, if you still lust in your heart, then you're condemned."
I can only assume the non-Jew you were talking about was a Hindu who had never read a word about Christianity. Please don't speak on a subject you know nothing about.
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You know, after reading the first few paragraphs of this article, it was all I could do to finish it. I am a non-Jew who loves Jews and works for a Jewish organization. To make the sweeping generalization in the first paragraph that "all of the people in the world have in common: They don't like Jews" is very hurtful. There are those of us who are non-Jewish that have no anti-Semitic feelings. Whatsoever. We read articles from chabag.org, we work for your companies, and we try to be open-minded. While I agree that some people in this world do not like the Jewish people, please refrain from making "some" into an "all." By saying that, you are undoing the work of so many others to educate others and promote understanding of the Jewish faith. How disappointing.
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Rabbi Friedman's article on Antisemitism is very deep and isnightful. I was introduced to antisemitism when I was not quite 5 years old. I can say without any doubt that there is one very simple cause of Antisemtism - we as a Jewish people claim to know G-d's ordained actions for us as a people and we do not do them as a people. Does anything more need to be said on the subject?
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Well okay. This was the third unexpected thing I've found this evening. And I liked it. It made a lot of sense. I even agreed with it. I love it when these things crop up randomly while you're looking for whatever. How bad must my teachers have been to make me hate learning? Anyway, that's beside the point because I love learning now.
And I'm a Jew. And I know I'm different and special. I've known it all my life. Maybe because I'm a Jew. I hadn't ever thought about it in those terms, so unequivocally. Yet I don't believe in God. What gives, rabbi?
I don't expect a reply. Just wanted to share that with you.
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I hate to criticize such a beautiful article - I truly loved it, even inspired by it - but in the interest of truth I feel I must.
Regarding the cause of anti-Semitism, you give an alternate explanation, and do not even allude to the issue as it is handled by Chaza"l, namely "Hafach libum lisno amo, l'hisnakel b'avaduv" (Tehillim) and the attendant reasons thereto.
I think the article should be renamed, but not altered in any other way. I am not qualified to offer a suggestion for a new name, however.
In short, a gorgeous article, but it leaves a huge gap.
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I really enjoyed the article and found many insightful thoughts in it. But I cannot agree with the idea that we as Jews are better than other humans or even of plants and other animals that G-d has created. I find every creature unique and amazing, and G-dly. No matter what it is. And if I agree that we as Jews have a very SPECIFIC MISSION on Earth, that is to reveal the G-ddiness in everything that has been created, I don't accept the idea that we are better. We're just different.
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The author is absolutely correct it is about being different, it is about having a different soul...
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What an amazingly informative, succint explanation. Thank you so much. I cannot wait to share the knowledge from this article with my friends and family.
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The above article is a clear testament to why people don't like Jews . It's not that they recognize that you are all from heaven or have different inhumane super souls , but rather due to you arrogance and narcissism .
The idea that the whole Universe revolves around you . That's really sick . Thank's for opening my eyes to how you really feel about all the rest of us human beings .
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For me it is the first time I read such a clear explanation about being the chosen people... it touches my soul... because I have known all my live there is no other way for me, than to stand for my being jewish...
You encourage me to "make" this statement...
Thank you for publishing this article.
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KUDOS to you, Rav Friedman. This specific article as well as the one "What it means to be a Jew" are outstanding and clarify much for the world especially in terms of ISRAEL and its survival...
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thank you very much, Rabbi. Finally, i understand, why, since i was very small i always felt and acted as though i were on the outside, looking in. My parents encouraged this in me, and i see the wisdom of what they were doing, for it drove my to purse an inner life, based on G-d.
it also explains, after years of studying philosophy and other theologies, primarily zen buddhism, when, i did finally acknowledge the secret inside, and decided to live my life as my great-aunt insisted i ought, based on Torah, and i felt as though i had finally returned home.
thank you, again.
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Just found the website...I recently made friends with all types of Jews, them helping me in my learning to future conversion.
So it's very sad young Jews are taught that every gentile hates them.
I was raised with no religion.
I never heard ONE thing anti Semitic from my family actually, or racist to any other group for that matter.
This is the case with my secular buds too.
My Baptist cousins pray for Israel, and respect religious Jews love for God, family values, morals.
My family learned of my interest in Judaism & are supportive, eager to learn more even though I'm not preaching.
Anti-semitism is because...Some think, "Well you're Chosen, yet not ALL of you act ethically ALL the time?!" Like a med school grad who keeps messing up operations.. Not ALL doctors from his highly regarded school mess up, but the media focuses on the negative. They assume everyone from that school is to be avoided... Thats how I explain it anyway.
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In 1984 at Bais Chana, Rabbi Manis Friedman said that non-Jews are right to say that Jews do not belong here, that this is their home and not ours. He said if they ask," What are you doing in my home?" We should say, "I'm here to fix the phone."
He did not explain, but "fix the phone" suggests that we are here to provide them with a way for them to communicate with HaShem. Their prayers reach HaShem because of the work we do as Jews... keeping Shabbos, keeping kashrus, and the rest of it.
Now in this article he says something very similar.
But I would like him to reiterate what the rest of the world is here for. The non-Jews include many fine people. They, too, serve Gd's purpose. If they ask--and they will, if they see this article!--what should we tell them is their purpose?
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I don't think it really bothers people to suggest that Jews are different. However, when you say that a Jew is a part of God whereas a non-jew isn't, that seems to imply Jewish superiority, rather than just difference, and it's that sort of belief that I reject wholeheartedly. Different from non-jews? Sure. Better than non-jews? No way.
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Your article is contradict with the following article on Chabad.org: Are the Jews the Chosen People? By Aron Moss.
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What a load of egocentric nonsense. The cause of anti-Semitism is social (out-group hostility), not metaphysical.
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I was at Beis Chanah 12 years ago & heard you say we are not at home in this world. You gave an analogy: "I'm here to fix the phone." So I commented on another site, and quoted that statement. Oy did I get tsurris! I was called arrogant, and in addition the woman said that Jewish women wear jewelry and don't care about other people etc.
So, you found a FEW gentiles who are OK with that concept of us, but most of them like to think they are gdly too, & have their own priests, not us, even though the Torah says we are a Kingdom of Priests and a Holy Nation.
I have a different suggestion about why they think we are trying to take over the world. Look at our Mashiach concept. When Mashiach comes, people will come to OUR holy mountain & worship OUR Gd, OUR way. That means--when Mashiach comes WE effectively will have taken over the world.
So from their p.o.v., we pray for Gd to have us take over the world.
And we do pray for that.
QED.
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All those who love Jews or like Jews or are totally indifferent to Jews--Thank you! I want to officially recognize you for your good attitudes. Whenever we encounter one of you, we give thanks. You may even be in the majority. But we are only half a percent of the people in the USA. That means when we walk out the door, we encounter 200 gentiles for every Jew. And unless we hide in a Jewish ghetto neighborhood, or unless we can "pass" for gentile, each of us, at least once a day, is going to be slapped with contempt or hatred in looks or words or even physical attack. It hurts. So when we say "all the world" we do not mean every person in the world. We mean that wherever we go, every day we have to endure those painful encounters. Oh we can stand up for ourselves or for each other, but what is truly restorative is for one of you to stand up for us. It means we are not alone after all. Yes, Gd loves you and us, but it's lonely & scary here on the edge of the world.
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As a non-Jewish person with some Jewish heritage (my great-grandmother may have been Jewish, but not in the direct female line), I am relieved to learn that I have the wrong DNA and therefore, I'm just bunk in the divine scheme of things! I guess that means I have no moral responsibilities whatsoever! Whew. You Jews have it tough. I'm going to go party now, since G-d doesn't care, why not?
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Non-Jews, with or w/o any Jewish heritage, matter very much in the Divine scheme of things!!!
Repeat: Non-Jews matter greatly!
Non-Jews have tremendous moral responsibility! Gd loves YOU!
The SEVEN LAWS of NOAH are for EVERYBODY! Even Rabbi Friedman will acknowledge that!
Also, have you ever heard the saying, Two Jews, Three Opinions?
Many orthodox Jews have a different world picture than Rabbi Friedman.
However, ALL will agree that it's great to party. The Bible says it again and again: Rejoice! Rejoice! Rejoice! So have fun, just don't commit adultery or incest, don't kill anybody, don't steal, don't be cruel to animals, and don't insult Gd with blaspehmy or idolatry. Hey, you can party all to pieces without doing any of those. You can even dress immodestly, sing obscene songs, eat yummy stuff, get drunk, and do lots of fun things, And for sure you can party party party! Gd CARES! Gd rejoices in your joy!
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The human soul is Divine; G_d breathes within it. This is the clear message of the creation account in Genesis and an explicit Mishnah to boot, "Fortunate is man that he was created in the Image."
The same Torah also presents the specialness of the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, "My child, My first-born, Israel." The Jewish sages, such as Rabbi Akiva, Rabbi Yehuda HaLevi and the Kabbalists, also discuss the specialness of the Jewish soul in glorious terms. However, any denigration this implies of non-Jewish souls must be understood purely in relative terms. as the general rule goes, "No verse of Torah can be removed from its simple meaning."
Furthermore, each soul has its private purpose that none else can fulfill. To each, all the universe centers around that purpose, if for the Jew, the non-Jew is here to assist in his fulfillment of purpose, for the Kurd or the Swahili or the Englishman or the Mongol, the Jew exists for him to fulfill his. After all, we are meant to be a "light unto the nations." If the nations are worthless, than what are we?
This is one of the most fundamental messages that the Jewish people has brought to humankind: The divinity of human life and of the human person.
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OK, Rabbi Freeman.
I see the following in your posting:
The nations are worthy, worthwhile, even glorious, filled with Divine purpose and meaning, beloved by Gd, & expected to serve Gd and keep Gd's commandments.
This follows logically from Gd's command to the Jews to "be a light unto the nations"-- they are important, spiritual, godly, & full of Divine purpose. All are here to serve the nations, so it follows logically that according to Gd, the nations are supremely worthy of service.
In addition to this logic, the nations have purpose each in their own right.
Moreover, within each nation, the life of each individual person has a special purpose which he or she alone can fulfill. That is why each person is here--to fulfill the task for which s/he was sent.
The book of Genesis says that all humanity descends from a single couple, The oral Torah says this means none can claim higher ancestry than anyone else. All are equal. Needed. Loved. Gd's breath.
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One of the seven mitzvahs of Bnei Noah prohibits murder. The source text: "An Adam who spills the blood of an Adam, his blood will be spilled, for in the image of G_d did He create Adam."
Now, if the majority of humanity is not in the image of G_d, then how could this law still apply?
Rather, all of humanity is in the Divine Image. When we say otherwise, we are only speaking in relative terms.
Similarly: The Zohar calls the tzadikim "the seed of Adam" as opposed to the rest of us, who are "the seed of an animal." Again, it is speaking in relative terms. The rest of us, compared to the tzadik, are on the level of an animal. But when you look at all of us as a whole, we are in the Divine Image.
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A tzadik is a man of surpassing goodness & divine connection & can serve to link ordinary people (Jews and nonJews) to the Divine. The Lubavicher Rebbe was a Tzadik, a "Living Perfect Master." Even a tzadik must weigh his actions to overcome his tiny temptations, but he is exalted & by comparison the rest of us can be said to be "like animals," just as people sometimes say that "compared to Gd we are like ants."
BUT such remarks are still obnoxious. Better to focus on the Hebrew Bible. Genesis I says--three times!--that we are made in Gd's image. Gen. II says we are all human with the Divine "Breath of Life [Hebrew Neshama, meaning Soul]" that Gd breathed into the first human "Gd breathed the Neshama into the [first] human, and the human became a living soul [nefesh]." And all of us are we sons and daughters of Adam and we ALL have this same Neshama and Nefesh [two Hebrew words for soul] within us. [We also all have "ruach" which means spirit, breath, or wind.]
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Well i would like to say something , actually i don't want you to edit this message but i know it's gonna be received by the right person.There is something special about the Jews ...what would we do without Freud and Einstein for example , without Mendelshon or Kafka...unfortunately nobody escapes from the influence of "evil"all the most precious and magnificent Empires have fallen because everything in this part of the universe has the tendency of degrading itself ...entropic tendency...i think the Jews have a mission but i think if God is the source of wisdom he will know if the Jews are still the chosen ones to help the world with the redemption, so i proclaim that there must be unity because a very pure and good cause can develop dragon heads and spit fire and i just wanted to remind you that even God can change his mind ...acomplish your mission with self sacrifice and love or the world will fall down for your people and f mine...i'm not Jew but i'm human too..shalom!!
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Of course you are human!!!
I am a Jew and despite my ignorance compared to Rabbi Friedman I have read enough Jewish texts to declare ABSOLUTELY YOU ARE HUMAN!
For the record, the GREATEST living Talmudic SCHOLAR and mystic, Adin Steinsaltz, in his book, "The 13-Petalled Rose," repeatedly speaks of every human soul (certainly INCLUDING YOU!), but we have room here for only a brief quote (pp55-56): "The divine spark that is the soul thus vitalizes the human body with the life of living creatures....this level of the soul [which is in all of us--Ann] is called the 'animal soul' in the sense that it...functions, thinks, and is aware of itself as being concentrated in a particular vessel, the vessel of the body. At the same time...this soul...is the source of those aspects or qualities peculiar to one as a person....At a higher level, above this primal soul, there exists, in every human being, [ALSO] a divine soul."
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Your article has place chassidic teaching into practical terms and has made me more sensitive of who I am. I commend on you on this article and hope that you have much hatzlach spreading the wellsprings of chassidus.
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""That explains something. I always wondered why Christianity is so unforgiving, so condemning. Whereas in Judaism, if you fail, so you'll do better next time, you'll try again."
Neither is 100% the case.
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Very well expressed! And one more idea to add --
Since the Jews are chosen, and have this speical holy soul, a piece of God within them..
That is why whenever a Jew breaks a mitzvah or does something immoral, against the Torah, this person will feel BAD. Feel that they did something wrong, even if it is not against the law of the country. Such as eating unkosher, speaking lashon horah, etc.
What is telling them that this is wrong? What is giving them this feeling of discomfort with themselves?
It's the soul, saying THIS IS NOT RIGHT. YOU SHOULD NOT BE DOING THIS.
Its not holy!
God is holy
You are responsible for bringing God's message to earth
Therefore, you must act in a holy way.
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But some Jews actually do wrong and do not feel bad.
And many Christians, Muslims, Hindus, and Buddhists feel bad when they do wrong.
We are all human. But Gd said that the Jews had a special job to do: to be a kingdom of priests and a holy natiion
Just as Christian priests do without certain things, such as marriage, Jews all are priests and do without certain foods.
As for the Shabbat, that was a special gift from Gd to Israel. Nobody else knows how to enjoy Shabbat. They call Sunday or Friday their "Sabbath" but "sabbath" is not Shabbat and in addition they do not enjoy it. They see it as a big pain and generally use it to catch up with whatever (but not with Gd).
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You come off quite condescending. Do you people not see that you only further cultivate hatred and conflict in this world by trying to raise yourselves above everyone else? With all due respect, you remind me of little children fighting over the favor of your father or some adult you admire. And as for your reasons for anti-semitism, you've oversimplified them. I think 99 out of 100 people would simply see you as conceited, narcissistic bigots clinging to your victimhood for sympathy and validation if you told them that you are chosen.
Thankfully I wasn't brought up in a particular religion and therefore was free to excerise both my spirit and intellect together to find a harmony that is manifestly lacking in organized religious views such as the ones espoused on this website. This "my father can beat up your father" nonsense is juvenile and a burden to the peace of the world. Get over yourselves and your self-importance.
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Thank you for your response.
So the rabbi is mistaken when he says that nonJews want from us merely to admit we are from Gd?
In that case, what do YOU think that those of us who continue to identify as Jews should reply when people ask us what we are, or when they ask what it means for the Bible to say we are "chosen"? Or when they ask us why we continue to be Jews instead of becoming "like everyone else"?
[I've heard it said that Gd will not allow us to become like everyone else. But some of us have indeed assimilated to the point of beng lost to the Jewish people.]
What should we say?
I am not sure whether your answer will fit the facts, but it will tell us what you want to hear, and that is worth knowing.
We need an answer that is not mealymouthed. If we say, "The Bible is wrong," that will not wash. We are the people of the Bible, so it makes no sense for us continue being Jews if we think the Bible is wrong.
What shall we say? What ARE Jews?
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As a child growing up I was convinced that I was "special". I nurtured this self-importance but over time became aware of the peculiar effect of my self-pride: it alienated me from those around me. Even though I learned how to hide my conviction in tactful delivery, my sense of specialness manifested as an arrogance and conceit palpable to those around me. Ultimately "egoism" became my defining characteristic. In my late teens I decided to change and in the decade since have tempered my sense of self without destroying my sense of purpose and am much more successful in my relationships.
The Jewish sense of "chosen-ness" stems from the same mechanism in effect in my life and the persecution Jews have faced is no different than that a hated egoist faces (albeit on a larger scale). Further, the Jewish youths' turning away from their identity of "specialness" is indicative of the same tempering I went through in my late teens. Jews will, as they age, relinquish this concept of spclnss.
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Thank you for being frank. :-)
The Bible says that Gd chose the Jews to use for his purpose. It quotes Gd as saying Ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests & a sacred nation. (Sacred means set apart for a certain purpose. E.g., when a woman marries, she is "sanctified" to her husband--set apart for him alone.) Not "holy" or better. Merely set apart for a particular purpose. Ours is, Gd's purpose. Like other priests who have dedicated their lives to Gd & have given up something for it (Catholic priests give up sex; Jews give up nonkosher food), Jews are just following their calling, their divine vocation.
If Jews relinquish the idea of chosenness (and many Jews are longing to do just that, for fear of gentile anger), it means giving up the Bible, giving up being Jewish at all. We have no right to give up what Gd has called us to do. &, we have no right to take pride in it either.
Are most Jews you meet arrogant?
Or are they merely brash (to hide fear)?
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Shoshanna, you're doing this wrong. MR reads the post and thinks the Jews are proud.
MR, it's most likely the opposite.
Many if not most Jews go around asking themselves, "What's wrong with me? Why can't I be accepted as just another human being? Why do they all think the worst of me no matter what I do?" And, in his fear, he may even grovel, or he may try to avoid groveling and overdo it. There have been Jews who even committeed suicide and left behind a note saying that this was the only way to escape from his Jewishness, having tried everything else.
The rabbi suggests a radical cure for them. He tells them, "So they don't accept you as a fellow human being. OK, don't be a fellow human being. Be another item altogether, something that serves the world. Go ahead and be happy with your nonhuman state; do the commandments. People will like that."
Well. Some of them might like it. For the ones that don't--there is no pleasing those ones. Sorry.
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Shoshanna you are asking the wrong question. There is nothing a Jew can do to be accepted as a fellow human being.
For centuries the European church preached that Jews were literally children of the devil. Europe even as statues representing Jews as devils. Whenever anything went wrong, the whole community would blame the Jews. For many, even in America, this remains a "normal" assumption. Whatever a Jew does is to be taken in the worst possible light. But there is more than that. The Jews are little enough, and easy enough to find, that we make great scapegoats. Whenever the community or the world has problems, the amount of Jew-hatred goes up, because many people seem programmed to blame the Jews for whatever goes wrong. When times are good for the world, Jews are relatively safe, but when times are bad, watch out.
Always pray for the Jews, for Jew-hatred is usu. the first sign that the world is in trouble. Like now.
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Most children feel a sense of "specialness" in their early lives. This self-importance usually diminishes over time but sometimes it is retained and renders the child unduly selfish, insensitive and egotistical. However it also often propels the child toward achievement. The obvious effect is to alienate the child from others, who have themselves learned to exist amongst others, rather than above them. The Jewish claim of "chosen-ness" is the same self-importance fit to a people rather than an individual.
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But you are assuming we feel special and that we are "claiming" to be chosen.
We do not experience it as a claim. The claim is in the Bible. We experience it as a burden. An obligation. A chore. An embarassment. We experience it variously and we try to make the best of it. We cannot get away from it, just as, in general, we cannot get away from our Jewishness. Even Jews who neglect all Jewish practice, and even Jews who formally "convert" to other religions, cannot get away from knowing, and from knowing that others know, that they are "really" Jewish. Hitler killed priests and nuns who had Jewish grandparents.
We have two choices: to follow the commandments or to try to escape them. Neither makes us feel special.
You maybe felt special. We mostly feel little and endangered. There's nothing special about that. Quit dragging your personal specialness into our situation. Get over it.
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The conceptualization of anti-semitism in this article is - I'm sorry - absurd. You'll learn more about the real origins of so-called "anti-semitism" by learning about the modern state of Israel (read Noam Chomsky Ph.d, a Jew, 'Israel, the Holocaust, and Anti-Semitism') and the history of banking (read Henry Makow Ph.d, a Jew, 'The "Jewish Banker Conspiracy": Understanding Anti-Semitism').
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I quote from this article - "When a poor person comes to a Jew and asks for something to eat, the Jew is actually lowering himself...". Wow guys, that kind of arrogance is provocative, of the same ilk as white supremacism spewed by former KKK grand-wizard David Duke, or Muslim and Christian extremism spewed by folks such as bin Laden, Pat Robertson or Jerry Falwell. All these people have their "book" that says they're basically the "most bestest and strongest and fastest and godliest in the whole wide world". Whether that book be the Torah, the Book of the Dead, the King James Bible or the Book of Mormon, you people are all expressing the same self-righteous garbage.
*Patting your heads, collectively, speaking as adults do to children* Alright children, you are very important and god loves you, but he also loves everyone else just as much. We're all special. How about that? We're all special. Now stop fighting.
If I could push a button and send all you white bigots, Jewish bigots, black bigots, Muslim bigots, Christian, Mormon, Hindu, Nazi and American and Chinese bigots to a different planet, I'd do it in a heartbeat.
Arrogance. Let's call an ace an ace: you are Jewish supremacists. I have nothing more to say and 99% of you will never realize how you are being. And that's why we all suffer. Step outside your narrow perspective for a moment.
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Phenomenon: Anti-Semitism
Question: What causes it?
Experiment: I read this article to my mother, who was raised Protestant. She knew very little about Jews and had certainly never internalized any sort of anti-Jewish sentiments. Okay, so having read Friedman's article to her I observed a distinct difference in the way she perceived Jews. "You mean they really believe they are chosen, or somehow different than the rest of us?" Yes, using Friedman's own word, "Divine". I asked her how she felt about Jews now, and she said that it changed how she felt.
Result: Jewish claims of supremacy engender, in-part, anti-semitism.
That is how anti-semitism begins. You can't tell a room full of people with their own books that you are more important than them because your book says so. That creates hatred. So, at 50, my mother finally has an opinion of Jews: they're arrogant and self-important. Of course she knows that most are nice people, just like most whites are not white-supremacist Nazis.
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"The conceptualization of anti-semitism in this article"--
by which you mean, I take it, our concept of what happens when antiSemites encounter Jews?
I think we have experienced more Jew-hatred (let's call a spade a spade) than you have, and it is far from absurd. It is emotionally painful, it can be physically painful, and for some within the past year it has been deadly. If you want to call that absurd, you have a strange notion of what the word means.
Some Jews have found it SO painful that they react with hate and with an effort to associate themselves from the Jewish people. Noam Chomsky is notoriously one of those. I saw a movie he did. The man happens to be briliant, so he can take anything he wants and make it sound true. I am unfamiliar with Henry Makow, but Jewish self-hate--a reaction to being hated --is an old phenomenon. The only reason to read such people is to justify one's own hatred by being able to say, "See, even this Jew says it!"
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MR, clearly the rabbi's bright idea about how to win the love of Jew-haters is a poor one.
I recommend to all the Jews reading this post: avoid thinking of yourself & speaking of yourself as creatures from Heaven. Go on as before: think of yourself as a regular soul who at Sinai accepted the job of obeying the biblical commandments. This means keeping kosher, keeping Shabbos & holy days, giving charity, modesty and faithfulness of husbands and wives, & the rest of the ten commandments, & others, eg, seeking the owners of found/lost objects to return them. Hundreds of other laws relate to the Temple & can't be done now, so pray 3x daily. Gentiles? The Bible says "love the stranger"--pray for them, treat them well, give to their charities, as we always have. Expect nothing from them. Some are righteous and will treat us like humans even in difficult times. Some are hateful & will hate us even in good times. Most are OK with us except in bad times. Like now.
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"Jews have suffered, and Christians have suffered. Mankind has suffered. There is no group with a monopoly on suffering, and no human beings which have experienced hate and hostility more than any other. I must say, however, that it is my impression that Jewish history has been taught with a whine and a whimper rather than with a straight-forward acknowledgment that man practices his inhumanity on his fellow human beings ..."
-- Rabbi Richard E. Singer, Highland Park, Illinois, Lakeside Congregation. Quoted by Alfred Lilienthal, The Zionist Connection. (New York: Dodd, Mead, 1978), p. 401.
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I don't believe that you read that stuff to your mother. Shame on you, teaching your mother to hate!
Especially since you know that the rabbi's suggestion is his own baby and that we never heard of it until we read it here. And you tell her--falsely--that this is what Jews believe???
And it doesn't matter how many obscure texts you may find that say anything remotely similar. You told her--falsely--that it represents our thinking. And you know perfectly well that it does not. No way in the physical univese for us to dream up any of that from what the Bible says. Your chances of finding such an idea in any Jew you encounter are slim to none.
Shame on you for lying to your mother!
I dare you to show her this posting from me.
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Okay, so now someone is saying they don't buy into all of this. All I did was read the article the Rabbi wrote, as is, with emphasis on the divinity of Jews over Gentiles and the part about one day being accused of stealing the land of the nations but being able to justify the "acquisition" by arguing that it is God's will. Anyone's moral compass would find the claims in this text offensive, arrogant and provocative. We don't "hate" anyone, by any means, but we are alarmed and disturbed by the claims of Jewish supremacy in this text. And like I said, most whites are not white supremacists just like most Jews are not Jewish supremacists - only those who subscribe to the kind of nonsense in this article.
Re-read this article yourself, but replace 'Jew' with 'Arab', 'Torah' with 'Quaran', 'G-d' with 'Allah' and 'Judaism' with 'Islam'. C'mon guys, this is classic supremacism, one step from Goy-hatred. As my aunt would say (crudely) "your sh*t stinks, too!"
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What are you talking about? "Some are hateful and will hate us..." A lot of you on this board seem to have a persecution complex. We all endure pain and as Rabbi Singer says, Jews do not have a monopoly on suffering. The point of all of my postings is to simply show that your Jewish supremacist ideas are no different from other, more admittedly vulgar strains such as white supremacy, nazism, nationalism and racism. As long as you and folks like you put yourselves above others you will fail to relate as compassionate beings. We were all born on the same planet; we all cry; we all hurt; we all suffer the same. That is all I am saying, Chuck. But then again it is not unlike many of those in the Jewish supremacist movement (i.e., ADL) to pull out the stops in assassinating those who question their supremacy. Move on, guys. Help us make the world better, not worse.
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Not only do you buy what the rabbi said, you make up stuff he did not say.
He did not say Israel. He said "land."
He said this: If peoplel object to Jews being on this earth, the solution is to agree with them. Tell them we are from Heaven and we're here to make the world better.
That's what he said. I thought it was an interesting idea and was curious to know if people would really like us better if they thought we were from Heaven. Obviously, he is wrong. It doesn't help at all.
You think we like this "chosen people" stuff. As if we hadn't been trying to escape it. There's even a whole denomination that says we are not chosen. But there's no pleasing you. You choose to ignore all but the worst we or anyone else says or imagines about us and ignore our good. Nobody's perfect but you discount at least as many good works as any (statistically out of proportion to our tiny numbers).
Christians say everyone goes to hell but them. Now THAT's arrogant.
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The local ADL had a march last week to commemorate the dignity of black people and to mourn the anniversary of the night that a black man was chained by two white men behind a pick up truck and dragged two miles to his death. The commemoration of his suffering was to walk two miles. Representatives of many religions were there, including at least one rabbi, priest, minister, and Muslim leader.
Yet the ADL refuses to acknowledge a Jew who was beheaded about the same time. The ADL said that the beheading was not an example of Jew-hatred.
This is typical of the ADL, quick to speak up for almost any minority except Jews. About the only thing they try to do "for Jews" is to object to creche scenes paid for with public money.
But the Lubavitchers said, OK, if you want, do creche scenes with public money, and also do a ceremony at city hall with a BIG menorah. And they lit the menorah and the ADL quit complaining.
The Lubavitchers, unlike the ADL, are OK with creche scenes
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loved this but it should be followed by the shrinking of man gives a broader picture
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My opinion is that antisemitism started back when the Jews started. When they began talking about there being just one God. All the other people, the polytheists, were majorly offended by these people calling themselves 'Jews' who dared to say that there was only one 'God'. How dare they. Who were they to come along and state that what had been believed for all time, that there was many Gods, was wrong. How dare they. So of course, Antisemitism was around a few thousand years before Christ.
Jew hating began -
they were first to proclaim
there is just one God
ancient blasphemy angers
those hooked on older views
absurd thought -
God of the Universe said
Jews say there is just one God
how dare they challenge
your polytheist beliefs.
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Jews believe that many things in this world are corrupt, why milk is pasteurized, why can't you go to a farm chose your cow or goat and choose if you want it raw or pasteurized, if you look at a supermarket aisle, they almost want you to buy into the fact that you are given options, pink milk, black milk, 2% milk, "the red milk is best, no the skim milk is better!" shouts another,..it goes beyond milk, but you catch my drift. Why aren't the cows respected anymore, although recently I've seen an outrage over dairy products, recently more people are saughting over whats right...Its interesting to note that a french man Luis Pasteur invented the pasteurized process, [excessive heating of lifes liquid] essentially to kill it. And yet the french eat the most raw dairy products beside switzerland of course. and these two nations are full of peace..French hasn't fought a battle in years, and the swiss well, enuff said.
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Rabbi Friedman is unbelievably eloquent, profound in a way which makes thought seem to obviously simple.
I would love to learn about what happens to Jews who chose to, or were forced to "convert", and the souls of those descendants who are obsessed with being Jewish, and who need to return.
Are the descendants having to pay for for this betrayal.
What is the lesson being taught to those descendants of Jews, who chose to forgo their Spiritual life, in order to live.
Are the descendants being punished?
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Brilliant Article.
Many many thanks.
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Favorites have always weathered jealousy,in the Bible, at home, between siblings, at school, as teachers pets, in fact, in every situation of being chosen amongst others. Dwell on this for a moment. A measure of feeling special is natural. How much more so being chosen by G-d as a nation?
There are arrogant amongst all peoples, it is repulsive across the boards indeed. There is however a difference between arrogance and being special in any walk of life. Many professionals are perceived with arrogant, politicians, lawyers, doctors, movie stars, et al. Some are, and others it's rightfully feeling special.
We are not all created equal, we all have unique features, abilities, and talents. These are what make each different from all others. G-d chose us Jews as a nation of Priests, for His own reasons, if you take issue with His choice, rail at Him, not us. How would you feel if G-d chose you?
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Anti-Jewishness is totally independent of anything that Jews say or do or are.
Barbara Tuchman, historian, who wrote The Guns of August, and has received many awards, lists several rules of history.
One rule is this: No matter what Jews do or don't do, when times are tough, people needing a scapegoat turn to the Jews to fill that role. Anything that the Jews say or do, anything whatever, will be held against us and used as a "reason" for doing what the haters are bound to do in any case, which is to demonize the Jews and imagine the Jews to be the "cause" of whatever is going wrong. Jews are the canary in the coal mine. When Jews are singled out as a group, and when castigating Jews fails to improve the situation, other groups will also be castigated until the whole matter coms to a horrible head and everybody suffers. But meanwhile the Jews have been attacked first and longest and are most injured of all. Eg, the number of Jews in the world NOW is less han in 1930.
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First, let me say that I love, Rabbi Friedman, your description here of a Jew lowering him (or her) self into the world by the mundane act of feeding or clothing a poor person. You have stated a profound truth: Even persons who are not ostensibly looking for 'spiritual nourishment' are introduced to the possibilities of the divine by acts of chesed that may appear mundane to some. Amongst Bnai Israel, Chabadniks are particularly good at this (as I can personally testify).
But,-
nothing in human or animal form should ever consider itself to be divine, nor consider any other human or animal form to be divine; no ands, ifs, or buts about it.
This is bound up in the continuing cause of anti-semitism, and our misunderstandings with the Xtianists and Islamic communities; I have no doubt about it.
The divinity is in your allegiance to G-d and Torah, and in your wonderful, and often unfailing acts of chesed, but not in and of yourselves.
Only G-d is divine.
No offense intended.
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When G-d decided to bring His Way to Humanity, He chose a Nation that would be able to communicate, someway, essence of His Way-The Sacred Torah! Now, the Gentiles see that He has His message in our world, but they are afraid; they want to make their own gods, so that they can be in charge, not have to be responcible for their behavior. So we, the Torah observant Jew, present an essintitial challenge to the Gentile World. And as their souls recognize our Creator, so the contrast becomes something that cannot be hidden. The success of those, Jew or Gentile, who live life His way, is seen as a threat to those in charge, governable positions as Kings, City heads or religious(Gentile) leadership. To protect their position, they reather challenge G-d than obey HIm and subdue their arogant ways to Him. So they accuse the Jew of their failures, or blame Israel for real or immagine failings; many which no intellegen person would believe.
So the Jew is held responcible.
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I agree, this has been my experience, regretfully. If it is not one thing, it is another, nothing seems to pacify those are determined to destroy. In my opinion, the worst thing that occurs is the internalization of the hatred, dislike, and baseless hostility when thinking the best of others, and giving the benefit of the doubt.
It is profoundly sad, to have to keep in mind, that this relentless, systematic, irrational will to cause harm, destruction, and slander is common currency with some who have raised it to a sublime technique, of covert behaviour. Lashon Hora (evil talk), is one of the "weapons" of choice; adding myth, exaggeration, and scorn to this morass of amoral values, enhances the image of "the truth".
Sadly, it hurts profoundly, especially when one would not think of responding in kind, or cause harm, in anyway.
That is, when being in a roomful of Jews, regardless of the reason, is the most healing of experiences. (experienced this at Shavuot)
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Rabbi, you are mistaken. To give charity such as food is precisely for the purpose of elevating the soul, Jew and non-Jew alike, feeling Divine goodness if you will. If charity were mundane, then the Talmud could not say that in the World to Come one would not experience the joy of charity.
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G-d does what He does for His purpose. His ways are not for us to understand, so much as to do, as in the declearation all the Souls of Israel made at the giving of the Torah: "I shall do and I shall learn." Rabbis state that "all the Souls" mean every Jew til the end of time, as every Jewish soul was at Mt. Sinai. And this includes the convert, so there goes the concept of being superior, for if we were, converts soul would not be included. Now, why? We have a job to do. It is enumerated in the Torah and explained in the writings and the Prophets, as Hillel stated: "If not for myself..." So, now, my sisters and brothers all over the land-get to work.
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This is unbelievable - Please give, direct, quotes from the Torah on where God says that a Jewish soul is not created, and that it is fundamentally different than a human being - and cite where these 'facts' can be found, that is a duty. A Jew is a Human Being, just as the prophets were humans, Abraham, Moses, etc - this is when study and reasoning and, Kabalah, Hasidus goes too far- a purely mental argument, based on study. It has nothing to do with fact or the reality of the state of souls - theirs is a lack of genuine gnosis of G-D, in G-D - this reasoning is limiting, racist to the core - the other side of anti-semitism in fact, and having the same effect on non-jews as antisemitism has on Jews - to say we are different, we are 'nearer' to God - and not even based on worship but on birth! How arrogant... quite unbelievable? Every religion has these types, it is vital to understand that not all Jews follow this reasoning. The ? is why do some want to believe it and propagate it? hmm
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I agree with you wholeheartedly. I add: When Rabbi's turn away people (gentiles) from Judaism, but then recognize that Judaism does not have the monopoly on God there is a contradiction. What of the person that has found a way to God? Theoretically imagine if Noah or Shem showed up at a Jewish Torah study and they were turned away. That would be horrible! "Teach in their own way," for non-Jews too, as everyone has an idea of what is his/her way, and hospitality to all is better than tribal orderliness.
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I realize my comment was quite intense after reading it - i do not like feeling that way...this goes to show, in fact, what kinds of feelings and emotions the article does stir up for the non-jew. It is not purely innocent and those propagating this view point should look at it - it is basically saying that Jews are closer to God, more "divine" and that all other humans are lumped together into another category (for the most part) and are closer to animals, with the animal soul - read the beginning of the Tanya, you will find it there - this is racist to the core and it is not excused just because it is part of some rabbinic reasoning and then canonized somewhere - it does not make it fact. Imagine if whites had a similar argument in towards blacks etc... it would be a fiasco... Those who believe in this and support it, i would love to hear your original sources and why this is fact -
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Surely every major religion distinguishes it above all others - if not who would ever chose a religion?
Believing your Religion somehow makes you a better person is the DEFINITION OF RELIGION. I have spoken with many Christians who tell me, "If you do not... you will not see salvation." And I have had Jews tell me that the only way to rest with G-d is to follow the law he passed on to my fathers...
Is it not clear that every Religion sets itself apart from every other - equally? When asked, if you respond "I am ____" -be it Jewish, Christian, Muslim, etc- you must, somewhere in the recess of your mind, believe that becoming ____ is the only way to be closer to G-d and, simultaneously, all other ways are inferior.
And so I ask you, is targeting this article because it is a Jew preaching that which all people preach not exactly what is meant by antisemitism?
think about it...
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